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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22828810">Onlook</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/yooodles/pseuds/yooodles'>yooodles</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>NCT (Band)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - College/University, Fluff, Getting Together, Humor, M/M, POV Alternating, Sexual Humor, side JohnYong, side markhyuck</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 13:14:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>8,376</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22828810</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/yooodles/pseuds/yooodles</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Doyoung knew from the second he saw Jaehyun that he just had to have him.</p><p>The story of Doyoung and Jaehyun, told through the perspectives of the people around them.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Kim Dongyoung | Doyoung</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>34</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>350</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Onlook</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello, I'm back again with this fluffy little piece. The concept is a little different cus I thought it would be neat to write a dojae fic from the perspective of outsiders. Hope this turned out okay!</p><p>If you find any mistakes pls let me know 😭😭😭</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kim Doyoung; third year, straight-A student, music major and president of the music council. He’s supposedly handsome and charming and respected by everyone in their faculty, but if you were to ask Taeyong, he just thinks Doyoung is an idiot. And he gets to think this way, because as his best friend since before they were old enough to speak, Taeyong knows Doyoung better than any other person in the entire universe. Probably even more than Doyoung’s own parents. </p><p>Which is why as soon as Taeyong walks into the lecture hall on the first day of class and drops down in the seat next to Doyoung, he can already tell by the crazed look on his best friend’s face that this is going to be a long class. </p><p>“Okay, what is it?” Taeyong prompts, they’ve got a few more minutes before class starts and he might as well get it out now instead of prolonging his suffering, “You look like you’re either about to break out into maniacal laughter or constipated.”</p><p>Doyoung lets out an affronted huff and smacks Taeyong on the arm, “What? Neither. Now as I was about to say, <em> look over there. </em>” </p><p>Doyoung extends a finger and points directly at something across the lecture hall. Taeyong follows the direction of Doyoung finger and wants to smack himself in the head. If he’s not mistaken, the object, or person he should say, behind Doyoung’s current crazed state is Jung Jaehyun. He’s a second-year student Taeyong has seen around in a few of his classes, majoring in something boring like biology and doing a minor in music. He's marginally relieved Jaehyun seems to be focused on something on his phone and hasn't noticed Doyoung pointing at him like a madman. </p><p>“<em> I want to ruin him </em> ,” says the voice beside him and <em> yep, okay that’s enough </em>.</p><p>Taeyong pries Doyoung’s arm back down and tells his shut his mouth before someone hears him. Doyoung lets Taeyong but his arm back down but does not peel his eyes away from Jaehyun. </p><p>“Do you think he’ll let me?” Doyoung asks dreamily, biting the corner of his lip, “<em> God, </em>I wanna wreck him up so badly.”</p><p>“<em> Doyoung, </em>” Taeyong hisses, already trying to figure out just how he was going to scrub what he’s just heard out of his brain.</p><p>Fortunately, the professor walks into class and Doyoung’s back straightens, attention quickly shifting to the front, pen in hand and notebook open to a fresh page in front of him. Taeyong sighs and gets out his own notebook, Doyoung may be an idiot but at least he was diligent in his studies.</p><p>Taeyong should have known peace was too much ask for because as soon as class ends, Doyoung’s idiocracy returns.</p><p>“Wait for me,” Doyoung instructs Taeyong, shoving his bag into his arms to hold.</p><p>Taeyong holds back a groan as he watches Doyoung march right up to the unsuspecting second-year with a determined look on his face. Jaehyun’s eyes immediately widen as he looks up and sees Doyoung and recognizes him. Taeyong walks up to closer to better hear what bullshit Doyoung is about to spout.</p><p>“Hi,” Doyoung greets, “I’m Doyoung. I couldn’t help but notice you diligently taking notes for this class. I, myself had a bit of trouble following along to the lecture so I was wondering if there was any way you’d be able to let me borrow your notes, just until next class.”</p><p>Taeyong can feel his own face contorting in embarrassment at his best friend’s words. That had to be the dumbest excuse he’d ever heard of in his life. First, if Jaehyun knew anything about Doyoung, he’d know that Doyoung was at the top of the class and was the last person to ever need to borrow notes from another person. People ask to borrow notes from <em> Doyoung </em>(he always says no but Taeyong steals them anyway), not the other way around. Second, even if Jaehyun didn’t know this, no one in their right mind would lend notes to some random student they’ve never met, just because they failed to pay attention in class. </p><p>Doyoung, however, remains confident in his approach. He leans against the desk and plasters a charming smile on his face. Taeyong can’t deny that Doyoung has a nice smile, but that doesn’t matter when he knows the truth and intent behind that smile. Jaehyun gives him a funny look and Taeyong waits for him to say no. He waits for Jaehyun to reject Doyoung’s ridiculous request so that he can’t get out of here and make fun of Doyoung to his heart’s content.</p><p>Much to Taeyong’s dismay, Jaehyun doesn’t say no. In fact, he doesn’t say much of anything as he reaches into his bag and pulls out his notebook, placing it directly in Doyoung’s hands. </p><p>“Thank you!” Doyoung exclaims, “You’re a lifesaver. I owe you one.”</p><p>He doesn’t miss the way Doyoung gives Jaehyun a quick wink before turning away, leaving Jaehyun <em> blushing </em> . Taeyong lets out an exasperated huff. How the hell did that actually work? Perhaps Jaehyun was just as dumb as Doyoung to have gone along with his stupidly. Doyoung <em> skips </em> back to Taeyong with a shit-eating grin, waving the notebook in his face.</p><p>Taeyong shoves his bag back at Doyoung.</p><p>“What the hell are you even going to do with those?” Taeyong asks with a roll of his eyes.</p><p>“I’m not using them, that’s for sure,” Doyoung laughs lightly, flipping through the pages of Jaehyun’s notes.</p><p>Taeyong peeks over Doyoung’s shoulder and sure enough, the notes are a disorganized mess of bad handwriting and little doodles in the margins. “Yikes.”</p><p>Doyoung snaps the notebook closed and tucks it in his bag.</p><p>“It doesn’t matter,” Doyoung says with shrug, “you don’t have to be smart when you’re that pretty. All I needed was an excuse to talk to him again.”</p><p>Taeyong shakes his head, “you’re unbelievable.”</p><p>It’s probably not any of his business who Doyoung wants to spread his legs for, but the innocence of a poor second-year is on the line. It was Taeyong’s moral obligation to be at least a little concerned. Doyoung links arms with Taeyong, the stupid smile still plastered on his face. “You’re just jealous I’m about to get laid and you’re not. It doesn’t hurt to put yourself out there sometimes.”</p><p>Taeyong grumbles. It’s not his fault he’s <em> shy </em>. He hates it when Doyoung uses this argument because he can’t even deny that Doyoung did seem to get laid significantly more than he did. Not that Taeyong would ever admit this to Doyoung. His best friend already has enough of an ego as it stands, he can’t take the risk his head getting any bigger.</p><p> </p><p>-</p><p> </p><p>“You don’t go clubbing,” Johnny states plainly as he watches Jaehyun bumble around their shared dorm in search of a specific pair of jeans that he claims shows off his ass.</p><p>Johnny personally thinks they look like every other pair of jeans Jaehyun owns but if it makes Jaehyun feel better about his non-existent ass, then who was he to stop him. However, that still didn’t explain why Jaehyun was going out of his way to look and <em> go to a club </em>. In all the years Johnny has known Jaehyun, he’s set foot in a club exactly once and promptly stepped right out not even ten minutes after. </p><p>“Aha!” Jaehyun exclaims when he finds the jeans and proceeds to pull them on, “maybe I want to start now. I heard it’s fun.”</p><p>Johnny shakes his head, “I know you and I also know that large crowds of sweaty strangers and loud music is not your definition of fun. There’s no way you’d ever consider going to a club unless…”</p><p>Johnny’s claps his hands together loudly at his own realization. <em> Of course </em>, there was only one reason Jaehyun would ever go out of his way to do something he hates.</p><p>“<em> Who is he </em>?” Johnny asks impatiently, “why didn’t you tell me you met someone!”</p><p>Jaehyun squirms on the spot, “It’s nothing, he’s no one. Just some guy from my music theory class. He said he’d be at the club tonight and invited me to come.”</p><p>Johnny knows for a fact that this isn’t <em> just some guy </em>, Jaehyun doesn’t operate like that. While he doesn’t have crushes often, when he does, he’s usually head-over-heels. Jaehyun was a bit of a romantic like that. Granted, this resulted in quite a few of nights spent crying over tubs of ice cream and sad breakup songs on repeat, but it wasn’t his fault he wore his heart so openly on his sleeve.</p><p>“Who is he anyway?” Johnny asks curiously, “Is he in the music faculty? I might know him.”</p><p>Jaehyun makes a non-committal noise in the back of his throat that tells Johnny he probably most-definitely knows him. Johnny smacks him lightly on the arm.</p><p>“Who is it? Spill or I won’t go with you tonight.”</p><p>Jaehyun tries to give Johnny a pout but eventually relents with a sigh, “Kim Doyoung.”</p><p>Johnny can’t hold back the bark of disbelieving laughter at the name on Jaehyun’s lips. Out of everyone his friend could have been pining after, of course, it had to be <em> Kim Doyoung </em>. Everyone in the music facility knew Doyoung, he was smart, handsome and popular. Maybe Johnny should be more surprised that Jaehyun hadn’t started liking him sooner. </p><p>However, as great as Doyoung is, Johnny can’t help but ask, “Isn’t he a bit of a manwhore?”</p><p>Jaehyun purses his lips and gives Johnny a glare, “Maybe. I don’t know. Does it matter? It’s not like I don’t want to sleep with him.”</p><p>Johnny sighs, he’s seen this enough to know that this was often the part where Jaehyun gets hurt.</p><p>“Just be careful,” Johnny reminds him, “I don’t want to see you come crying to me when he doesn’t call you back.”</p><p>Jaehyun pats Johnny on the shoulder, “I’m a big boy, I can handle myself. Now, are you ready to go? I wanna get there before there’s a line.”</p><p>Johnny rolls his eyes and gets up off of his bed. As much as he wants to look out for his friend, he knows that Jaehyun wouldn’t listen. He was stubborn like that. Johnny adds a mental note to go on a grocery run for ice cream.</p><p> </p><p>Just as Johnny had expected, Jaehyun grimaces the moment they step into the nightclub. His eyes flicker to the door and Johnny is just about to suggest that they can leave and spend the night at home instead, but something catches Jaehyun’s eye and has his grimace transforming into a dopey smile. Johnny’s gaze flickers across the club and lands on none other than Doyoung, who stands leaning against the bar with a drink in his hand. His eyes slowly trail down Jaehyun’s figure with an almost predatory look on his face and before Johnny can stop him, Jaehyun is dragging him by the arm across the floor towards Doyoung.</p><p>“You made it!” Doyoung yells over the music.</p><p>He snatches Jaehyun’s hand, pulling him closer and even in the dim lighting of the club, Johnny can see the tips of his ears begin to turn red.</p><p>“Hey,” Jaehyun says nervously, “this is my roommate Johnny.”</p><p>He gestures towards Johnny but keeps his eyes on Doyoung. Doyoung looks at Johnny for a second, as if he’s sizing him up. </p><p>“Nice to meet you, Johnny,” Doyoung finally greets with a smile, “this is my best friend Taeyong.”</p><p>Doyoung all but pushes a shorter male in front of him, much to the displeasure of who Johnny can only assume must be Taeyong. He can tell that Doyoung is only using his friend to distract Johnny so he can have Jaehyun all to himself but Johnny probably would have complained if he wasn’t so caught up in just how <em> striking </em> Taeyong is. He’s surprised that he hasn’t noticed him earlier. </p><p>“Now that you’re all acquainted, we’re going to go dance,” Doyoung says and before either Johnny or Taeyong can answer, he’s pulling Jaehyun towards the dance floor with a hand around his waist.</p><p>They disappear into the crowd, leaving Johnny alone with Taeyong, who is offering him shy glances. </p><p>“So,” Johnny starts, “I’m guessing there’s no need for me to wait up on Jaehyun tonight?”</p><p>Taeyong laughs, “Definitely not, Doyoung’s going to try to take Jaehyun home even if it’s the last thing he does.”</p><p>Johnny laughs along mildly, he had assumed this much and while he can already foresee the possible fallout, it’s not like Jaehyun would listen to him anyway. The best he can do is let his friend learn the lesson on his own. Besides, Johnny had more important things to worry about right now, namely entertaining Doyoung’s very attractive friend for the night.</p><p> </p><p>-</p><p> </p><p>Both Taeil and Taeyong know well-enough that they aren’t here to watch movies. Sure, they might be sprawled out on Doyoung’s bed in front of his unnecessarily large flatscreen with some rom-com Doyoung’s already forced them to see four times playing in the background, but the focus of this gathering is not the movie.</p><p>Taeil knows Doyoung well enough to tell from the Doyoung keeps fidgeting under the blanket, eyes flickering from the screen to them. That and the fact that Taeyong had warned him prior to their arrival at Doyoung’s place that Doyoung had another one of his little <em> dalliances </em>the other night although Taeil just prefers to call them one-night-stands. You’d think most people would prefer to adhere to the rule of “don’t kiss and tell” but Doyoung proved to be quite the opposite. In all his years that he’s been friends with Doyoung, he and Taeyong have become more than privy to every single detail of their friend’s more than colourful sex life, whether they asked for it or not. </p><p>“So,” Taeyong speaks up first, “How was your night with Jaehyun?”</p><p>There it is, that one little push Doyoung needs to break the dam. Taeyong has always been good at dealing with Doyoung, knowing it was in all of their best interests to give into what Doyoung or risk him physically bursting. Doyoung grins widely and reaches for the remote to pause the movie, god forbid it interrupt him during his recounting of his <em> night with Jaehyun. </em></p><p>Taeil recognizes the name through Yuta, as one of Johnny’s friends or something. He’s never officially met the boy but from what he’s gathered from the few times they’ve crossed passed, he isn’t surprised Jaehyun managed to attract Doyoung’s attention. Taeyong had filled him earlier on the general details of Doyoung’s newest conquest but knowing his friend, it’ll be less than a week before his attention moves onto the next pretty thing that catches his eye. It’s a cycle Taeil knows well, Doyoung has a bit of a habit of going through men rather quickly, but if it makes him happy, who was he to judge? </p><p>“I’m <em> glad </em>you asked!” Doyoung says excitedly, “I had an amazing night!”</p><p>“It sure looks like you did,” Taeil points out from the way Doyoung is literally beaming more than usual, “did he have a big dick or something?”</p><p>Doyoung shakes his head slowly. “That’s the thing,” he says almost timidly, “I don’t know. I didn’t sleep with him.”</p><p>Taeil had been half-certain and half-terrified Doyoung was going to go on a detailed tangent all about Jaehyun’s dick because he tended to do things like that, so to hear that Doyoung hadn’t even slept with the guy was surprising to say the least. </p><p>“No way,” Taeyong says, Taeil may be shocked but Taeyong looks downright flabbergasted, “you were going on and on the other day about how you wanted to <em> mount him like a stallion </em>. I saw the way he was looking at you too, how the hell did you manage to keep it in your pants.”</p><p>Doyoung fixes Taeyong with a glare, but it doesn’t stop his cheeks from flushing at Taeyong’s words.</p><p>“The original plan was to fuck him,” Doyoung says with a sigh, “and I took him back to my place thinking that we would, but we got to talking instead and…he’s actually pretty cool. I thought he’d be some sort of brainless hot jock type, but it turns out we have a lot in common and he’s actually pretty fun to talk to.”</p><p>“So you just talked all night?” Taeil asks with a raised brow, “that’s it?”</p><p>Doyoung huffs, “<em> Yes </em>, I don’t see what’s so hard to understand about that?”</p><p>“Wow,” Taeyong blinks, still looking at Doyoung as if he’s grown a second head, “I’m happy you enjoyed your time with Jaehyun and all, but I still surprised you didn’t do anything with him. You could have very well talked and then fucked. A blowjob at least.”</p><p>Taeil nods in agreement, he doesn’t think he can think of a single instance where Doyoung has brought a hot guy home and not gotten in his pants. Doyoung rolls his eyes at them.</p><p>“Believe me I wanted to, but it’s not often I find someone I really enjoy spending time with. I kinda want to keep him around and see where it goes. You know I don’t have many friends and I wouldn’t mind one more. Sleeping with him would just ruin that.”</p><p>This was a first. Doyoung hasn’t ever talked this way about a guy before and it’s clear that neither Taeil or Taeyong are sure how to react.</p><p>“You want him as <em> just a friend </em> ?” Taeil asks because something about that just didn’t seem all that believable to him, “sounds like our little Doyoung is trying to get himself a <em> boyfriend </em> here.”</p><p>Doyoung shakes his head adamantly, “That’s not true! I really do want to be his friend.”</p><p>Taeyong hums, “Does Jaehyun know this? Cus I saw the way he looked at you at the club. I’m not an expert but I’m pretty sure those weren’t <em> friendly </em> eyes he was giving you.”</p><p>“Yes,” Doyoung says defensively, shooting another glare at Taeyong, “For your information, we talked about it and he agrees, we’re better off at friends.”</p><p>“Right,” Taeil says and now it’s his turn to be on the receiving end of Doyoung’s glare, “whatever you think is best.”</p><p>Doyoung sticks his tongue out, “You guys are just jealous that I won’t need you anymore when I become <em> best friends </em> with Jaehyun. I’m going to go get some water.”</p><p>And with that, Doyoung leaves the room, leaving Taeil and Taeyong alone to stare at each other in disbelief.</p><p>“Okay,” Taeil says as soon as Doyoung is out of hearing distance, “there is no way Doyoung possibly only thinks of this Jaehyun guy in a friendly manner.” </p><p>Taeyong sighs and nods with pursed lips, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen him like this before. I think he’s developing actual feelings for him.”</p><p>Taeil hums in agreement. It wasn’t hard to see that Doyoung had a crush, even if he wasn’t willing to admit to himself, and not just in the <em> I want to fuck you </em> kind of way. </p><p>Doyoung returns before they can discuss it further, seating himself on the edge of his bed. He’s got the little pout on his face he has when something doesn’t go his way and his chest heaves in pointed sighs. Taeil rolls his eyes and shares a look with Taeyong, they both know Doyoung has always had a flair for the dramatic and it would be in their best interest to patch things up before he gets worse.</p><p>“We’re sorry,” Taeyong says and Taeil nods along, “you know we’re only trying to look out for you. I’m sure Jaehyun will make a great friend.”</p><p>This seems to pacify Doyoung, who lets out a little noise of affirmation. He turns the movie back on and gets back into his place in between the two of them, content to conclude this conversation.</p><p> </p><p>-</p><p> </p><p>You’d think that as a freshman, being invited to an upper-year party would be a fun and exciting thing, and initially, Mark had been bouncing off the walls when his team captain Johnny had casually extended an invite to him, but half an hour in, he was beginning to realize this party was just the opposite. When Johnny mentioned he should swing by a party one of his friends was hosting, Mark had expected loud music, never-ending alcohol, and cute boys to flirt with. While there certainly was an endless supply of music and booze, the last thing he’d expected was for everyone at the party to be so <em> unavailable </em>. </p><p>It doesn’t matter where he looks or who he tries to talk to. It seems as if every single person surrounding him has someone else. The living room is filled with couples dancing and making out and Mark has no interest in getting in-between any of them, even if he recognizes a few as his teammates. He’s halfway through an internal debate as to whether he should just give up and wallow in his loneliness at home when Johnny shows up to put him out of his misery. <em> Well almost. </em> While he’s grateful to no longer be standing awkwardly alone, even Johnny has an arm wrapped around the shoulder of a pretty looking guy he’s never seen before. He didn’t even know Johnny was seeing someone.</p><p>“Hey Mark,” Johnny greets him a light smack on the back, “I’m glad you could make it, Yuta throws a great party, doesn’t he?”</p><p>Mark gives Johnny a half-hearted smile, as much as he loves his team captain, he can’t quite agree with his judgement on the party.</p><p>“Right,” Mark says skeptically, eyeing the person tucked under Johnny’s arm, another glaring reminder of his own singleness.</p><p>“Oh!“ Johnny exclaims as soon as he takes notice of Mark’s staring, “I forgot to introduce you guys, Mark this is Taeyong and Taeyong this is my teammate Mark.”</p><p><em> Okay </em>, that was not the reason for his staring but nevertheless it’s nice to put a name to the face. </p><p>Mark nods, “Nice to meet you, Taeyong. Are you the two of you…”</p><p>He trails off but Taeyong is quick to answer his question with a light chuckle. “Not officially,” he says, looking up at Johnny with a shy smile, “but we’re getting there.”</p><p>Johnny blushes and once again Mark feels like nothing more than a third wheel. Mark gives them a tight smile, they seem cute together and he’s happy for the two, but he can’t hold back a sigh. </p><p>“Hey, are you okay?” Johnny asks, sounding concerned.</p><p>Perhaps he was not as good at hiding his emotions as he’d thought. “It’s nothing really,” he shakes his head, “it’s just, everyone here seems to be paired off. <em> I’m beginning to wonder if I’m the only single person at this party </em>.”</p><p>Both Johnny and Taeyong look at him in confusion for a moment, it’s clear this wasn’t something that has occurred to either of them before. Johnny raises an eyebrow, “What do you mean?”</p><p>Mark sighs again. </p><p>“First of all, look at yourselves. Second, look around the room, just look at those two over there, I swear they’ve been making out for half an hour straight. I feel so single just staring at them.” </p><p>Mark points to a couple on the couch, half of whom he recognizes as Johnny’s roommate Jaehyun. Seated on top of Jaehyun’s lap is another boy who is busy whispering something he figures must be undeniably lewd in Jaehyun’s ear from the way his face is slowly turning bright red and his hands grip tighter on his hips.</p><p>Mark doesn’t expect Taeyong to let out a loud snort, nearly choking on the drink in his as he turns his head over at the couple he’s talking about. Johnny lets out a weary chuckle beside him and Mark gives the two of them a questioning look. </p><p>“Are you talking about Doyoung and Jaehyun?” Taeyong says with a shake of his head, “If it makes you feel better, I guarantee you they are very much <em> just friends </em>, or at least that’s what Doyoung adamantly tells me every day.”</p><p>Johnny gives an unconvincing nod of agreement, “Yep. Friends who sit on each others laps and make out when they’re drunk.”</p><p>Their eyes trail back to the two who are now back to making out and the three of them let out a mutual noise of disgust at the sight. Mark has a feeling there’s a lot more to this story but he’s not sure he wants to know. For once he almost thinks he’d rather be single than to be caught up in a mess like <em> whatever it is </em> Jaehyun and Doyoung have going on. </p><p>“I think I’m going to find a bathroom,” Mark says, feeling the urge to escape again.</p><p>Johnny gives him an apologetic look, “Sorry bud, if it makes you feel any better, you can hang out with us the rest of the night if you want to.”</p><p>Mark thanks him for the offer, although he doesn’t think he’ll be taking him up on it tonight. He decides to make his way upstairs; he’s not actually looking for a bathroom, what he really wants to do is find a quiet bedroom where he can lie down and scroll on his phone for a bit and he lets out a sigh of relief when he opens a random door and finds an unoccupied bedroom. Mark lies down for a bit, content on scrolling through social media while the muffled noises of the party continue to go on downstairs. He’s not quite ready to leave yet, but he’s also not quite ready to rejoin.</p><p>Just as he’s beginning to get comfy, the door to the bedroom bursts open and in barges a couple with their faces glued and hands all over one another. Mark quickly bolts upright on the bed and lets out a loud noise of surprise, shocking the couple apart. The two stare at him and it’s only then that Mark recognizes them as Jaehyun and Doyoung from earlier. Of course, it had to be these two. Taeyong’s whole <em> just friends </em> explanation was becoming less and less believable by the second. </p><p>“Shit, sorry, we’ll find another room,” Jaehyun says, scrambling to scoot Doyoung back towards the door.</p><p>Mark quickly stands up and stops them, “No need, take this one, I’m done here.”</p><p>The two share a look and apparently it’s all the encouragement they need to go back to sucking face. Mark grimaces, taking this as his cue to leave as fast as possible, but unfortunately not fast enough to miss Doyoung saying, <em> “Get on the bed, I want you to ride you so badly,” </em>right before he slams the door shut. He grumbles, finding his way onto a balcony to get some fresh air and scrub the memory of the two out of his brain. Maybe this was a sign he should call it a night.</p><p>Mark is about to head out when he’s interrupted by footsteps and a loud voice.</p><p>“What the fuck, I was looking for a bathroom and I just walked in on a couple doing the nasty. I didn’t even know people could bend that way, I think I need to bleach my eyes.”</p><p>A boy with an appalled look on his face joins him on the balcony and Mark can’t help but laugh out loud.</p><p>“Yep,” he says apologetically, “I think I know exactly who you’re talking about.”</p><p>“Some people need to learn how to lock a door to save the rest of us the trauma,” the boy fake retches.</p><p>Mark hums in agreement and the boy takes a pause in his rant to look over at him properly for the first time, “I’m Donghyuck by the way.”</p><p>The boy, <em> Donghyuck </em>, looks vaguely familiar and Mark wonders if he’s seen him around in his classes before. </p><p>“Mark,” he offers back with a genuine smile.</p><p>Donghyuck nods, leaning against the rail of the balcony, “So <em> Mark </em>, what are you doing up here all alone when there’s a whole party going on downstairs?”</p><p>Mark shrugs, “I needed to take a breather, music was getting loud and there were <em> way </em>too many couples down there.”</p><p>Donghyuck’s eyes immediately light up. “I know right! That’s exactly what I was thinking. I can’t believe I let my brother Taeil convince me this would be fun. He ran off with his boyfriend the first second he got here.”</p><p><em> Finally, </em> someone who <em> gets </em> it. They fall into easy conversation after that, ranting about their brothers and team captains and lamenting over their mutual singleness. <em> Perhaps </em> , Mark thinks, <em> this party isn’t so bad after all. </em></p><p> </p><p>-</p><p> </p><p>Jungwoo thanks the cashier and grabs his bag of takeout, making sure to leave a sizable tip for the poor soul who has the work the midnight shift. After spending the better part of his evening speeding through an essay that he really should have started on earlier he thinks he deserves to treat himself with greasiest mac and cheese from his favourite diner for a job well done (or at the very least <em> good enough, </em> he’s not picky). </p><p>With the prospect of food on his mind, he’d normally be heading straight home to dig in already, but the sound of a loud, familiar laugh catches him off guard and has him halting mid-step. A slow smile begins to spread on his face, Jungwoo could recognize that laugh anywhere. Spinning on his heel, it takes him exactly one second to spot him across the diner, huddled in a booth with a friend.</p><p>“Doyoung,” he has to stop himself from shouting as he rushes to the table, “Oh my gosh it’s been so long.”</p><p>At the sound of his voice, Doyoung’s head tilts in his direction and his eyes light up. “Jungwoo,” he breathes in disbelief, standing up instantly to pull him in for a hug.</p><p>Jungwoo relishes in the warmth of Doyoung for a moment before letting go, if only because he notices the glare of Doyoung’s seatmate on them. He’s never seen this one around before and Jungwoo knows all of Doyoung’s friends. <em> He’s cute </em>, Jungwoo thinks and he can’t help but wonder just what kind of relationship the two of them might have.</p><p>“Come join us,” Doyoung invites, scooting over to make room on his side of the booth, “I had no idea you were back.”</p><p>For the past year, he’s been on exchange in Europe, only having come back this semester. In hindsight, he feels a little guilty not telling Doyoung that he’s back, but it’s been a while since Doyoung’s been in his immediate circle of friends and he’d debated whether or not it would be awkward to call him up. However, after seeing him in person, Jungwoo thinks himself foolish for ever worrying about being awkward around Doyoung and he regrets not reaching out sooner.</p><p>A loud cough interrupts them, alerting them to the third person at the table, who looks between the two of them with a raised eyebrow and a pout. Jungwoo laughs softly as Doyoung blinks at Jaehyun in confusion, as if he’s only just remembered his existence at the table as well.</p><p>“Right,” Doyoung says with a shake of his head, “I don’t believe you’ve met. This is my <em> friend </em> , Jaehyun, and this is Jungwoo, he’s my <em> err </em>…” </p><p>“Your what?” Jaehyun prods, leaning in to rest an elbow on the table, clearly interested to know more.</p><p>Jungwoo mentally laughs. <em> Friend </em>, sure. Doyoung purses his lips and appears to have a hard time finding the right words to describe their relationship. He gives Jungwoo a pleading look as if to ask for help.</p><p>“Ah,” Jungwoo says quietly, “We used to date.”</p><p>Doyoung gives a stiff nod beside him, his eyes carefully trained on Jaehyun for his reaction. Jaehyun’s posture tenses and his brows furrow in confusion as he glances over Jungwoo as if trying to solve a puzzle in his head. It’s clear this was not the answer he’d expected. </p><p>Jaehyun turns his attention to Doyoung, “I thought you didn’t date.”</p><p>His voice is calm, but there’s an accusatory tone to it that makes Doyoung shift uncomfortably in his seat. </p><p>“I don’t really,” Doyoung explains, “aside from Jungwoo. He’s the only real boyfriend I’ve had.”</p><p>Jungwoo doesn’t expect Jaehyun to turn to him as if asking for confirmation.</p><p>“Yeah,” Jungwoo nods in affirmation, “It was well known that Doyoung liked to sleep around before we dated and I presume he went back to his old ways after we broke up.”</p><p>The look Jaehyun gives him can only be described as offended and Jungwoo realizes that perhaps his choice of words may be misinterpreted.</p><p> Jaehyun confirms this when he lets out an angry huff, “Hey, you can’t just say that about someone.”</p><p>Jungwoo sighs and fights the urge to snort; he knows for a fact Doyoung isn’t the least bit offended by his words. Fortunately, Doyoung comes to the rescue before Jaehyun can reprimand him any further.</p><p>“Don’t worry,” Doyoung rests a placating hand on Jaehyun’s arm and he relaxes slightly at the touch, “Jungwoo doesn’t it in a negative way. If anything, he’s just as bad as I am, if not worse.”</p><p>Doyoung shoots him a fond smile and Jungwoo shrugs in response, “Probably why we broke up. Two manwhores don’t make a right.”</p><p>Doyoung lets out an amused breath, “that and the fact you left for the other side of the globe for a year.”</p><p>Jungwoo rolls his eyes, knowing Doyoung is just teasing and there weren’t really any hard feelings when he left. Sometimes, relationships just fizzle out and fortunately, they had as amicable of a split as either one could hope for. He only hopes Jaehyun can see this as well because as of right now, he still looks unsatisfied with either of them.</p><p>“How long did you date for?” Jaehyun butts in suddenly, “who broke up with who?”</p><p>In any other situation, Jungwoo would be annoyed at Jaehyun for being far too nosy for his own good, but he can sense that whatever is going on with Jaehyun goes beyond simple curiosity and he figures he’d also be doing Doyoung a favour by indulging him in his mini-interrogation.</p><p>“We probably dated for less than a year?” Jungwoo answers the best he can, “It took us a while to officially start dating. As for the breakup, it was very much a mutual decision.”</p><p>Again, Doyoung looks at Jaehyun carefully to gauge his reaction. It’s long past the point where Jungwoo has felt as if he has intruded on something he shouldn’t and overstayed his welcome. <em> Or well, </em> Jaehyun’s welcome. </p><p>“Look, guys,” Jungwoo starts, rising from his seat, “it was great seeing you again, Doyoung, and really lovely meeting you, Jaehyun, but I gotta go now.”</p><p>Neither Doyoung nor Jaehyun are surprised at Jungwoo’s sudden decision to leave, and for that, he’s almost relieved. While Doyoung offers him a smile and grateful goodbye, Jaehyun leaves him with pouty noise of acknowledgement. Jungwoo really hopes they can work out whatever they have going on between them.</p><p>With a final wave, he heads towards the exit. Jungwoo pauses in the doorway, taking a moment to look back at the pair. Doyoung’s taken both of Jaehyun hands into his and they’re hovered over the table with their heads close in deep discussion. Whatever Doyoung is saying to Jaehyun must be effective because the corners of his lips rise into a small smile, the first one Jungwoo’s seen on him all night. </p><p> </p><p>-</p><p> </p><p>“I’m coming!” Yuta yells in irritation as he stalks towards his front door, the doorbell going off over and over again.</p><p>He swings to door open to reveal his sheepish looking boyfriend armed with a badly wrapped gift in his hand. He’s the last to arrive and they’ve all be waiting around for him for the last hour so they can start the gift exchange.</p><p>“You’re late,” Yuta states with a frown, grabbing onto Taeil’s hand to drag him into the house.</p><p>“Sorry babe, lost track of time,” Taeil apologizes cooly, adjusting their hands to lace their fingers together before leaning in to press a light kiss on Yuta’s cheek.</p><p>“Apology not accepted,” he huffs, but they both know from the lack of actual anger in his voice and the smile to threatens to creep on his face he doesn’t mean it.</p><p>In all his faults and terrible time management skills, Yuta could never be angry at his boyfriend for long. He pulls Taeil into his living room, where their friends sit sprawled out on the couches and floor. Now that Taeil was here, the party could probably get started. And by party, he means the Secret Santa gift exchange he had spent the better part of the last month planning. Their friend group has grown a lot in size since last year and it’s the first time they’ve done this with so many people, partly due to the fact that everyone seemed to be getting into relationships left and right.</p><p>“Alright, who’s ready to—” Yuta pauses, eyes scanning the room.</p><p>Taeil pads over to seat himself on the opposite end of the couch from where Taeyong lies half-asleep with his head pillowed in Johnny’s lap. Mark and Donghyuck sit cross-legged on the floor, occupied by a video game on the flatscreen in front of them, while Ten and Kun sit cuddled on one armchair, chatting quietly between themselves.</p><p>“Where are Doyoung and Jaehyun?” Yuta asks in confusion.</p><p>He could have sworn the two of them had just been here a second ago. Actually, on second thought, he’s having a bit of trouble remembering the last time he saw the pair, having been distracted playing video games with Mark and Donghyuck before the doorbell rang.</p><p>Mark pauses the game and Taeyong slowly pulls himself off Johnny’s lap, rubbing his eyes to wake himself up.</p><p>“Last I remember, they said they were going to the kitchen to get drinks,” Taeyong says in-between yawns, “I’m pretty sure they disappeared after that.”</p><p>Taeyong’s face suddenly scrunches up in realization and he shares an exasperated look with Taeil, “You’ve got to be kidding me.”</p><p>Yuta flops down on the couch, half over his boyfriend, with a resigned sigh, “Oh god, they better not be doing it my bedroom again, how much longer do you think they’ll be?”</p><p>Taeil pats Yuta’s gently on the thigh as if to console him, “knowing them, it could be between anywhere in the next five minutes to an hour.”</p><p>Yuta huffs, “Does anyone want to go get them?”</p><p>It’s almost comical how fast Mark and Donghyuck yell, “NOT ME” at the same time, disturbed looks on both their faces. Yuta looks around the room at his friends, none looking at all keen to volunteer to be the ones to interrupt the pair. Yuta had assumed as much, even he would not be cruel enough to subject any of them to this.</p><p>“I guess we’ll wait it out,” Yuta grumbles, reaching over the grab the bottle of wine of the coffee table and pour himself a glass.</p><p>At the very least, if he was going to be forced to wait for their nymphomanic friends, he’d better do it with alcohol in his system.</p><p>Johnny chuckles from the other end of the couch, “And here I was questioning why Jaehyun was putting so much time and effort into getting ready earlier when he already has a boyfriend.”</p><p>This causes a few heads to turn in Johnny’s direction in shock, including his own. </p><p>“Jaehyun has a <em> boyfriend?! </em> ” Ten all but screeches, “What about <em> Doyoung?” </em></p><p>Yuta nods along in agreement, this is the first he’s hearing about Jaehyun having a boyfriend.</p><p>Taeyong rolls his eyes. “<em>Doyoung </em>is his boyfriend,” he hurries to explain before anyone can say anything stupid, “they officially got together last week.”</p><p>“Wow,” Yuta says, unsure if he should be surprised or not, “Jaehyun told me Doyoung doesn’t date.”</p><p>Taeil shakes his head, “Well Doyoung also told us they were just going to be friends and he wasn’t going to sleep with him although I’m pretty sure we’ve all seen the two of them with their tongues down each other’s throats enough times to know how that worked out.”</p><p>“No kidding,” Mark says, “<em> just friends </em>, my ass.”</p><p>Yuta has to agree with that one, he’s pretty sure <em> friends </em> don’t give each other hickeys and sit on each other’s laps at social gatherings.</p><p>“Agreed,” Taeyong hums, “those two are absolutely disgusting, you want to know what I walked on the other day?”</p><p>Mark’s face pulls into a grimace, “I really don’t.”</p><p>It’s no use really because they all know Taeyong will tell them anyway now that he’s brought it up. He launches into a story about how he walked into Doyoung’s apartment, which he has the key for, only to find the two of them lounging on the couch fully naked.</p><p>“They weren’t even fucking or anything,” he exclaims, “just hanging around with no clothes for no reason. Why I asked why, Doyoung just shrugged and said clothes got in the way as if that makes any sense. What the hell can clothes possibly get in the way of?”</p><p>Johnny gives his boyfriend a pointed look and Taeyong swats at him, “Other than <em> that. </em>Besides, they can’t possibly be fucking 24/7?”</p><p>“I mean…” Yuta gestures in the direction of his staircase.</p><p>The group lets out a mutual shudder. </p><p>“That’s better than the time I walked in on them and they more or less asked me to join,” Ten pipes up.</p><p>Kun raises an eyebrow at his boyfriend, “Did they now?”</p><p>“I said no and got out of there as fast as I could, of course,” Ten assures him, taking his hands into his own, “but if I stayed any longer I can’t guarantee I wouldn’t have changed my mind.”</p><p>Ten winks at Kun who only rolls his eyes at him, used to his teasing by now. </p><p>“I wonder what sparked them to actually make it official,” Kun muses, “it’s so unlike Doyoung to talk about his feelings.”</p><p>Yuta’s barely known Doyoung for a few months and even he can agree on that. Jaehyun wasn’t any better either, there was no way he had to guts to make the first move. They were clearly obsessed with each other in a way that went beyond lust and while it was about time they did something about it, he also wouldn’t have been surprised if they danced around their weird friends-with-benefits relationship forever. </p><p>Ten snorts, “I bet Jaehyun probably made him cum untouched or something, and Doyoung had no choice but to cuff him.”</p><p>“Knowing Doyoung, that could probably do it,” Taeyong laughs before lowering his voice, “to be honest though, I’m pretty sure it had something to with a run-in with Jungwoo a few weeks ago.”</p><p>“Doyoung’s ex,” Taeil clarifies for those in the room who don’t already know.</p><p>Yuta listens in interest, this was a new piece of information. “That makes sense,” Johnny says, “Jaehyun’s never been too good at controlling his jealousy.”</p><p>They’re so immersed in their own gossip that it takes a moment for anyone to notice the very two in question bounding down the stairs with clasped hands and red faces, looking quite frankly as if they’ve both been mauled by animals.</p><p>Jaehyun grabs a seat on the couch and Doyoung follows with a seat right in Jaehyun’s lap.</p><p>“Oh great!” Doyoung says with an excited clap, “Taeil’s here! We can finally start giving gifts.”</p><p>The entire room gives the pair weary glares and Yuta clears his throat, “It wasn’t Taeil we were waiting for.”</p><p>Jaehyun wraps his arms around Doyoung and buries his face into his back in embarrassment but Doyoung just shrugs, not looking the least bit apologetic, “In my defense, I drew Jaehyun for Secret Santa and I was only giving him his gift.”</p><p> </p><p>-</p><p> </p><p>A loud crash down the hall jolts Jeno awake. He groans, pulling his sheets over his head as he mourns being woken up. He had a hard enough time falling asleep in the first place and has a feeling it won’t be any easier the second time around. He hears faint voices drifting from somewhere his bedroom door. <em> Odd </em>. His parents have long been asleep and Doyoung announced he was going to bed hours ago, much to Jeno’s dismay. It’s not often his brother is home and he’d been hoping to spend more time together before Doyoung had to return to school.</p><p>Figuring he wasn’t going to fall asleep anyway, Jeno drags himself out to bed to grab himself a glass of water and investigate the noises. He creeps out of his room towards the dining room, careful to keep his footsteps light and silent. The voices become clearer as he gets closer; there’s two of them talking in hushed tones, one of which he recognizes as his brothers but the other one is unfamiliar. Now that he knows it’s not a burglar or murderer, Jeno decides it’s safe enough to stop tip-toeing and walk into the dining room to see what his brother is up to at this god-awful hour.</p><p>Doyoung doesn’t immediately notice him when he walks in, his back facing the doorway, but the other person in the room, a boy that looks about Doyoung’s age, eyes widen the moment he spots Jeno. The expression on his face causes Doyoung to whirl around in a panic only to sigh in relief at the sight of Jeno.</p><p>“Oh hi,” Doyoung greets his awkward smile before turning back to the other boy, “don’t worry, it’s just Jeno.”</p><p>“Hey,” Jeno says, eyeing the stranger in his dining room warily, “Doyoung, who is this?”</p><p>Doyoung sighs, moving aside to not block Jaehyun before putting his hand out as if to present the boy, “This isn’t how I’d pictured the two of you meeting, but I guess it’ll have to do. Jeno, meet my boyfriend Jaehyun.”</p><p>Jeno’s lips part in a little <em> oh, </em> before transforming into a mischevious grin that has Doyoung’s eyes narrowing at him. He had suffered through hours of his brother prattling on about his amazing new boyfriend over the phone, but he’d never actually met him, <em> until now </em>. Seeing Jaehyun in person, even as he nervously struggles to meet his eye, he can see why Doyoung is so crazy about him.</p><p>“Damn,” Jeno says, “So you’re the infamous Jaehyun that has my brother head over heels.”</p><p>Doyoung looks like he’s about to tell him off when Jaehyun turns to look at Doyoung with the widest grin, “Really? Head over heels you say?”</p><p>Doyoung scowls at Jeno, “Shut up.”</p><p>Jaehyun steps forward, not looking so nervous anymore, “No Jeno, please continue, I’d love to hear more.”</p><p>Doyoung holds a finger up at him in warning, but Jeno’s not afraid in the slightest. Chances like this tease his brother didn’t come up often and he’d be a fool not to take it. Besides, Doyoung loved him too much to actually do anything about it. Jaehyun, keen to hear more of what Jeno has to say, gently pries Doyoung’s finger down, “Baby, didn’t you say you had to clean up your room a bit before I could come in?”</p><p>Doyoung looks at Jaehyun for a second in consideration before turning to Jeno and putting on a poor attempt at a menacing glare, “Fine. But you better not say anything to him.”</p><p>Jeno gives his brother a smile an enthusiastic nod and Doyoung reluctantly pulls away to head towards his bedroom, grumbling under his breath about “Jaehyun just showing up to his house without a warning.”</p><p>“So?” Jaehyun says once Doyoung has disappeared down the hall, “What kinds of secrets about my boyfriend are you gunna reveal?”</p><p>He sounds hopeful and it doesn’t escape Jeno’s notice the way his voice softens on the word <em> boyfriend </em>. He could tell all the embarrassing stories about his brother he can come up with if he so chooses, but he has a feeling that isn’t what Jaehyun wants to hear.</p><p>“He really likes you, you know,” Jeno says instead, “Trust me, I’m his brother and he tells me everything. I know him better than anyone else and the way he talks about you, which is pretty much every day these days, I’ve never heard him sound like this about anyone before.”</p><p>Jaehyun bites his lip to hold back a smile. “I really like him too,” he says quietly with a blush high on his cheeks, “I think I might even love him.”</p><p>Jeno nods in understanding, he thinks Doyoung might just love him too but decides to keep his mouth closed, that was for Doyoung to tell Jaehyun himself. They wait in comfortable silence for Doyoung to return and the moment he steps back into the dining room, his eyes dart between the two of them suspiciously. Jeno sneaks a glance at Jaehyun who is staring at Doyoung with a soft look on his face and stars in his eyes. </p><p>Doyoung flushes slightly under his gaze so he turns his attention solely onto Jeno, “What did you say to him?”</p><p>Jeno smiles sweetly at his brother. “Nothing,” he says with a shrug, “I was just telling how cute you look together. I’m happy for you two.”</p><p>His face flushes further and Jeno can tell from the way Doyoung continues to eye him that he doesn’t quite believe him, but he doesn’t push the topic further either. Instead, he steps closer and pulls Jeno into a hug.</p><p>“Thanks, Jeno,” Doyoung says sincerely, “We’re going to go to bed now so try and get some sleep. Sorry for waking you up earlier.”</p><p>“It’s alright,” Jeno says after Doyoung pulls back again, “better me than mom or dad.”</p><p>Doyoung laces his fingers with Jaehyun and the three of them head down the hall towards their rooms.</p><p>“Goodnight guys,” Jeno says once he reaches his doorway, “Friendly reminder that I’m right next door so no funny business.”</p><p>He smiles to himself at the sight of Doyoung rolling his eyes and Jaehyun red as a tomato beside him before finally entering his room and shutting the door behind him.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>The End. Tell me what you thought of it!</p><p>find me on:<br/><a href="https://twitter.com/yooodles">twitter</a><br/><a href="https://curiouscat.me/yooodles">cc</a></p></blockquote></div></div>
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